The recent Russian Zapad wargaming exercises included a plethora of electronic capabilities demonstration and potentially more. Russia is known to recently been involved in illegal immigration efforts in Sweden, Finland, and Norway along with hostile intent along its northern borders (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) including cell/communication tower tampering. Could the recent Zapad exercises be more than just wargaming?

Some What If thoughts on these non-linear actions:

– Testing capabilities, distance, strength, impacts

– Testing responses like a stone in pond

– 2nd and 3rd order effects were measured to determine the impact on targets, targets responses, etc.

– Russians had people in each target country assisting with target impacts

– Russians monitored target government communications from within each country

– Determine length of time for target government to respond and what methods were used and where to get communications back online (if at all) – the locations of the response represent capabilities unknown to Russia until such an exercise is performed

– Other possibles:

– A cover for illegal activities that occurred during the exercise – a feint, a ruse

– Testing a precursor to actual execution – that is why military exercises are performed

– What capabilities are being left in the exercise areas; what is not being removed after the exercise using the exercise as a ruse to place assets close to Western borders that were not there before